Stoic Winery (ex-Prince Trubetskoi): the new page in history

In the morning of February 24, 2022, just a few hours after the full-scale russian aggression in Ukraine began, the entire territory of Prince Trubetskoi Winery, which was located in Kherson Region, was occupied. Some employees managed to leave and evacuate their families, the rest remained, stuck in obscurity. The work of the winery was paralyzed — literally, since the first day of the big invasion. During the occupation, the oldest wine-making chateau in Ukraine was looted and gutted. Seven collection bottles of wine from the cellars of `prince Trubetskoi, which had been stored since the beginning of the 20th century, were stolen. The largest wine collection in Ukraine, which had been collected for 70 years, was also completely looted by the occupiers. The vineyards were mined, until now, they suffer from shelling and missile attacks. The winery’s vinification and ageing facilities, as well as the laboratory, were also repeatedly attacked. A few hundred thousand liters of wine stored in the chateau were either destroyed or stolen. The company’s warehouse in Kyiv was also hit by a Russian missile, eliminating dozens of thousands of bottles of wine. 

To this day, the winery suffers from missile attacks and shelling almost every day. It is still impossible to physically enter its territory, although this part of Kherson region was de-occupied several months ago. According to the owners, at the moment it is quite difficult to fully assess all the damages. However they admit that the 21 million euros that had been invested in the development of the chateau since 2003 have already been lost, so the winery and the tourist complex will have to be reconstructed from scratch. The territory of the chateau is registered in the “waiting list“ for demining, but it is still unknown when it will actually happen. Before the beginning of the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, more than 50 people worked at the winery. Currently, only 4 people are working on the project. 

Since February 24, 2022, Prince Trubetskoi Winery winery has not produced a single bottle of wine…

Ukrainians are a hardworking, powerful and optimistic nation. Ukrainian winemakers are no exception. Prince Trubetskoi Winery is being renewed and rising from the ashes like a phoenix. The third war in the history of Chateau Trubetskoi gave a push to major changes: the owners decided to rename it into Stoic Winery. Why Stoic? “Stoicism is a philosophy of self-control, perseverance, acceptance of the situation and striving for victory, regardless of events and circumstances. We will persevere and become even better,” comments Serhiy Parkhomchuk, marketing director of Stoic Winery. — “After the russian invasion in Ukraine, our chateau was seriously damaged, its restoration will require a lot of time and effort. We respect the history and activities of the founder of the chateau, prince Trubetskoi, but we believe that our identity and our future should not be connected with the russian prince.”

The renaming is the first step towards the new history of this winery. The most important strategic task is to restore the production of fine wines in the historic chateau, taking into account all the assets of modern winemaking. The Stoic Winery team has plans to restore the laboratory, 200 hectares of vineyards, the hotel and the tourist complex, and to continue development of this area. However, this will be possible only when access to the chateau grounds and vineyards will be regained, with guaranteed safety for employees and guests. 

Despite significant losses, Stoic Winery partially resumed its activities in the facilities of another partner winery, Chateau Pinot from Odesa region. This collaboration once again demonstrates that the Ukrainian winemaking community can be united in difficult times, winemakers helping each other to overcome the troubles and challenges of war.

Chateau Pinot winery is located in the village of Ozerne, Odesa region. It has more than 50 hectares of its own vineyards in the picturesque and sunny Southern Bessarabia, as well as an up-to-date production complex. Yevgenia Pustovit, a skilled and highly professional winemaker who is fairly considered one of the most “elegant” winemakers in Ukraine, provides Stoic Winery with complete control over production, from the vine to the bottle. This successful collaboration created Dnipro Hills, a new wine that embodies the craftsmanship of Ukrainian winemakers and the true Ukrainian character. The name of this wine demonstrates a certain philosophy: Dnipro is the heart of Ukraine, its history and its future. Stoic Winery will launch the sales of the new Dnipro Hills wine collection in September 2023. At the launch stage, 6 wines will be released, and in 2024 the number of SKU will be increased to 10-14. “Until we reconstruct our winery, we will produce our wine in collaboration with the Chateau Pinot winery,” said Sergiy Parkhomchuk.